Teri Garr praised after her death by Friends star Lisa Kudrow for having ‘huge Influence’ on her

Lisa Kudrow gave special praise to the late Teri Garr following the acclaimed actress’ death Tuesday at age 79.

Kudrow, who worked with Garr when he made multiple guest appearances on her hit sitcom Friends in the 1990s, gushed that the One From The Heart star was a “genius” in a statement to People.

“Teri Garr was a comedic genius who was and is a huge influence on me and I know I’m not alone in that,” the Comeback star, 61, said.

“I feel very lucky and grateful to have been able to work with Teri Garr,” she added.

Garr, who died after a years-long battle with multiple sclerosis, appeared alongside Kudrow in three episodes of Friends.

In The One At The Beach, the final episode of the third season, Kudrow’s character Phoebe took some time away from the rest of the main cast to spend time with Phoebe Abbott (Garr), a woman who knew her parents. .

But their connection turned out to be much stronger than that, as Phoebe later discovered that Garr’s character was her biological mother.

The episode and her two subsequent appearances gave Garr the opportunity to show off her comedic skills, which included imitating young Phoebe’s distinctive mannerisms.

Garr returned for the next episode, the season four premiere The One with the Jellyfish, which created some dramatic tensions when a shocked Phoebe declared that she never wanted to see her newly discovered mother again.

However, they later reconciled in favor of a healthier relationship, and Phoebe Sr. returned later that season for the final time in The One With Phoebe’s Uterus.

In that episode, Phoebe asked her mother for help after her brother (played by Giovanni Ribisi) and his wife Alice (Debra Jo Rupp) asked her to be a surrogate mother for them.

Garr’s character humorously tested Phoebe by having her care for a puppy for a few days before having to give it up to see if she could avoid becoming attached to the child.

The test failed when Phoebe would not give up the puppy, which turned out to be her mother’s dog.

Garr was best known for his supporting roles in Young Frankenstein, Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind, and Dustin Hoffman, starring Tootsie.

He had a rare lead role in Francis Ford Coppola’s musical film One From The Heart (1981), which was a box office failure.

However, retrospective reviews have been kinder to the film, with some critics reassessing it positively after Coppola released a re-edited and restored version of the film, titled One From The Heart: Reprise, earlier this year.

In 2002, Garr revealed that he had been diagnosed with a chronic disease that damages the central nervous system (CNS). Years later he suffered an aneurysm in 2006.

Having nearly 160 credits to her name starring in influential television shows and movies from the 1970s to 1990s, she was an influential performer for many, including SNL legend Tina Fey.

The peak of her career came in 1983 when she was nominated in the Best Supporting Actress category for her work as Sandy Lester in Tootsie.

She ultimately lost to her co-star Jessica Lange from the same film who turned out to be the loan winner out of ten nominations that year.

Her most famous television role came when she played Phoebe Abbott in three episodes of the iconic sitcom Friends from 1997 to 1998.

In the episode The One At The Beach, her character reveals to Lisa Kudrow’s character, Phoebe Buffay, that she is her biological mother.

Teri had returned to the role in two other episodes titled The One with the Jellyfish and The One with Phoebe’s Uniform.

Another of his iconic roles was that of Ronnie Neary in Steven Spielberg’s Close Encounters of the Third Kind in 1977.

She played the wife of Richard Dreyfuss’ character Roy when the film won the Oscar for best cinematography in 1978 for Vilmos Zsigmond.

However, her breakout role was as the sassy assistant Inga in Mel Brooks’ 1974 classic Young Frankenstein, where she starred opposite Gene Wilder.

Oscar-nominated actress Samantha Morton paid tribute to the star, having worked alongside her in the independent comedy Expired in 2007.

She shared a photo of the late actress with the caption: ‘Teri Garr.’ It was a true honor to work with you. A powerful, uncompromising and hilarious woman. A brave fighter against multiple sclerosis, you brought so much joy to so many people. #terigarr’

The talented actor was originally born in Ohio but eventually moved to Los Angeles.

He attended Hollywood High School and Cal State Northridge before moving to New York to study acting.

In fact, Teri began her career as a go-go dancer, including performing at six Elvis Presley performances and the rock concert The TAMI Show.

In the 1960s he had small roles in comedies such as That Girl, Batman and The Andy Griffith Show.

Her first speaking role came in 1968 when she starred in Head, which was the unconventional feature film by the pop band The Monkees.

Teri became a regular singer and dancer on The Sonny And Cher Show.

Then came one of the biggest breaks of his career when he landed a role in Francis Ford Coppola’s 1974 film The Conversation.

Years later, iconic filmmaker Coppola cast her again to star in the 1981 film One From The Heart.

Teri was also a late night staple, frequently appearing on The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson and Late Night With David Letterman and even hosting Saturday Night Live three times.

However, her career slowed down a bit in the 1990s as she starred in 1994’s Dumb And Dumber, a 1999 episode of ER, and, of course, her aforementioned guest spot on Friends.

The talented star recalled her career in an autobiography, titled Speedbumps: Flooring It Through Hollywood, which was published in 2006.

Garr is survived by his daughter Molly O’Neil and grandson Tyryn.